Chapter 222: Unsettling Realities
Elisa’s scream shattered the quiet, jolting Harry awake.
“Elisa, can’t you see I’m sleeping? Quit making all that noise!” Harry snapped, irritated by the disruption.
Caspian rushed into the room, alarmed. “What’s wrong, Elisa?”
Elisa stood frozen, staring in shock. How could there be a Harry in front of her… and another one in the bed? Was she hallucinating? Was she sick?
Terror gripped Elisa as she began crying uncontrollably. This was too much. What kind of illness made her see two Harrys?
Harry, now fully awake, groaned, his frustration rising. “Elisa, you’re so annoying. I just wanted a nap.”
Caspian shot him a look. “Elisa’s scared, and instead of comforting her, you’re scolding her? What kind of brother are you?”
“Indulging her won’t help,” Harry countered, his irritation growing.
Elisa cried even louder. “The two Harrys… I imagined them, and now they’re arguing! This is so scary!”
The sound of Elisa’s cries brought Alaric and Galatea rushing to the scene. Alaric picked her up, his concern obvious. “What’s wrong, Elisa? Why are you crying?”
Elisa, between sobs, said, “Daddy, I’m sick.”
“What happened? Are you feeling unwell? Where does it hurt?”
Elisa shook her head. “I’m fine, but my mind is messed up. I saw two Harrys, and they were arguing. Am I sleepwalking? Am I delusional?”
Alaric and Galatea exchanged amused glances before Alaric explained, “You’re not delusional, and you’re not hallucinating. There are indeed two people in front of you, but they’re not both Harry. One is Caspian, and the other is Harry. They’re both your brothers. You have two brothers.”
Elisa stared at him, stunned. Then, her crying started again, louder than before.
Alaric, now even more worried, asked, “What’s wrong now, Elisa?”
“Not only are there two Harrys,” Elisa wailed, “but now Daddy is talking crazy too!”
Harry, now fully awake and annoyed, muttered, “Daddy, Elisa isn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. I suggest you take a whole day to explain it to her, then give her a year to process it. Meanwhile, I really need to catch up on sleep. I’m exhausted.”
With that, Harry crawled back under the covers, his voice muffled as he tried to go back to sleep.
Caspian, shrugging, agreed with Harry. “Daddy, you take your time explaining things to Elisa. I’ll go make breakfast.” With that, he left for the kitchen.
Alaric and Galatea exchanged a look and began the difficult task of explaining the situation to Elisa. It wasn’t going to be easy.
“I’m really a little princess?” Elisa interrupted, barely processing anything else. “I’m Alaric’s biological daughter? I’m a little princess in a rich family?”
“Yes,” Alaric said with a soft smile, hoping she’d calm down.
“Does that mean I can inherit your fortune?” Elisa’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Of course, it’s all yours,” Alaric replied, trying not to chuckle.
Elisa’s face lit up. “Oh my God, this is so wonderful! I’m finally rich!” She jumped up and down, thrilled with the idea of becoming wealthy.
Alaric and Galatea shared a look of helpless amusement. Elisa’s focus was completely on the money.
“And besides Harry, I also have a Caspian as my brother?” Elisa asked, still processing.
“Yes,” Alaric answered.
Caspian, hearing his name, smiled. “Yes, I spoil you just as much as Daddy does.”
At this point, Harry had fully woken up, and Caspian had finished preparing breakfast. Elisa eyed the two brothers, still trying to figure out how to tell them apart. “How do I tell the two identical brothers apart?” she wondered aloud, resting her chin in her hand.
Then, an idea seemed to strike her. “I got it!” She dashed into the study, grabbed a pen, and quickly returned. She wrote a number one on Caspian’s forehead and a number two on Harry’s.
Elisa giggled. “Now I know which one is Caspian and which one is Harry!”
Harry, annoyed, snapped, “Elisa, can you not drag us into your stupidity? Why do I have to have a number two on my forehead?”
Elisa shrugged. “You’re right; marking just one is enough,” she said with a casual tone.
“Good. Now wipe mine off,” Harry demanded, his voice firm.
But instead of wiping the number two off Harry’s forehead, Elisa wiped the number one off Caspian’s forehead.
Harry scowled. “Elisa, can you explain why, if only one person gets marked, it has to be me?”
“Because it suits you better,” Elisa said seriously. “Writing on Caspian’s forehead would ruin his image.”
“Elisa!” Caspian groaned, looking exasperated.
“Elisa is our sister. How can you be so mean to her?” he added, clearly displeased by the whole situation.
Elisa grinned. “You should learn from Caspian. Both of you are brothers, but why aren’t you as nice as him?”
Harry sighed dramatically. “Daddy, please take me back to the Knight family. I think I can still tolerate that bad grandma. Just take me away.”
Alaric, amused by Harry’s request, smiled without responding. At that moment, his phone rang. It was Silas.
“You guys eat first. I need to take this call,” Alaric said, standing up and leaving the dining table with his phone.
On the other end of the line, Silas’s voice was tinged with guilt. “Hello, Mr. Knight. I made a mistake earlier. When I went to the Nash group, Mr. Nash saw me. He asked me to tell you that you don’t need to interfere with the Nash family’s affairs anymore. As for the Nash family’s debts, he said he’d pay them off—even if he had to sell his organs. He won’t use a penny of yours. He was very adamant. I’m sorry, Mr. Knight. This was my fault.”
“I understand,” Alaric replied, his tone calm but heavy with the weight of the situation. He had anticipated this.
He knew as much as Cormac did about the Nash family’s debts. Trying to help secretly was simply impossible.
After finishing the call, Alaric let out a long, deep sigh. Things had reached a point where he and Cormac probably couldn’t go back to how they were. No matter what, in his heart, Cormac remained his only true friend.
Cormac had paid off all the Nash family’s fines and debts. Unlike Stellan, he wasn’t heavily in debt—he just had nothing left.
Cormac truly had nothing left. His house, car, and even his hospital were all mortgaged. He had emptied his savings.
Overnight, he went from wealthy to destitute. After settling the debts, he took one last look at the Nash group and then turned and walked away.
Stepping outside, Cormac looked up at the bright morning sun. For the first time, he didn’t know where to go. He had no home and no money.
At that moment, a car pulled up in front of him. The window rolled down, and there was Ambrose, sitting in the backseat.